Author Archives: admin

HIV Returns in Two Men Thought Cured After Stem Cell Transplant

By adminDecember 12, 2013Stem Cell Doctors

Two HIV-infected men who were thought to be clear of the virus after having stem cell transplants have had the AIDS-causing pathogen return, their doctors said, scuppering hopes their cases might lead to a cure.

The two Boston men, who were also suffering from lymphoma, had no trace of the virus eight months after the transplants, researchers led by Timothy Henrich at Brigham and Womens Hospital said in July, though they said it was too early to say the men had been cured. The virus reappeared in one of the men in August and in the other in November, Henrich said in a statement after presenting the results at an AIDS meeting in Florida yesterday.

The setback leaves just two people known to have been cured of HIV infection: Timothy Ray Brown, a San Francisco man who has been clear of the virus since having a bone marrow transplant for leukemia in 2007, and an infant born with HIV in Mississippi in 2010 who was considered cured after intensive treatment shortly after birth.

The new findings are disappointing, but scientifically significant, Henrich said in a statement. We have discovered the HIV reservoir is deeper and more persistent than previously known and that our current standards of probing for HIV may not be sufficient to inform us if long-term HIV remission is possible if antiretroviral therapy is stopped.

While AIDS drugs such as Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD)s Atripla reduce HIV to undetectable levels in the body, making it a chronic disease, they dont completely clear it. The virus hides in so-called reservoirs, where it switches off the normal process of replication, enabling it to avoid detection by the medicines.

Studies have shown that when patients who have the virus under control stop treatment, the latent HIV reactivates and comes roaring back, forcing victims to resume daily pill therapy.

The two Boston men had stopped treatment following their transplants without the virus rebounding immediately, suggesting they may have been cured. In one man, the virus reappeared 12 weeks after he stopped treatment, and after 32 weeks in the other man. Both have resumed therapy and are in good health, Henrich said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Simeon Bennett in Geneva at sbennett9@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Phil Serafino at pserafino@bloomberg.net

See original here:
HIV Returns in Two Men Thought Cured After Stem Cell Transplant

Stem cell science: Can two girls help change the face of medicine?

By adminDecember 12, 2013Stem Cell Medicine

Dec. 8, 2013 at 2:49 PM ET

Jeff Swensen / for NBC News

The Mogul family at The Children's Institute in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where parents Stephen and Robyn have taken their daughter, Bari, 9 and Hayley, 15, to undergoing extensive therapy to help with their rare genetic disorders.

At 15, Hayley Mogul lacks the fine motor skills needed to write. Her sister Bari is 9 and still eating baby food.

There's no cure for their rare disorders, caused by unique genetic mutations. But for once, there's an advantage to having conditions so rare that drug companies cannot even think of looking for a cure. The sisters are taking part in a whole new kind of experiment in which scientists are literally turning back the clock on their cells.

Theyre using an experimental technique to transform the cells into embryonic form, and then growing these baby cells in lab dishes.

The goal is the get the cells to misfire in the lab in just the same way they are in Hayleys and Baris bodies. Its a new marriage of genetics and stem cell research, and represents one of the most promising applications of so-called pluripotent stem cells.

One day these two girls will probably change the face of medicine as we know it, said their father, Steven Mogul.

Steven and Robyn Mogul dont understand why both their daughters ended up with the rare mutations, which cause a range of neurological and metabolic problems.

We have been tested, said Mogul, a 45-year-old wealth manager living in Chicago. We dont have any mutations, and there are no developmental issues. We have no idea how it happened.

Read more from the original source:
Stem cell science: Can two girls help change the face of medicine?

Definigen raises £1.3m for stem cell advance

By adminDecember 12, 2013Stem Cell Medicine

Cambridge University spin-out Definigen has raised new funding of 1.3 million to advance its stem cell technology business from a UK platform.

The cash will be used to launch new stem cell products for disease modelling and drug discovery.

The company supplies human liver cells (hepatocytes) for preclinical drug development and disease modelling applications using human induced pluripotent stem cell technology.

This is a trailblazing venture for the business and the university. The company represents one of the first commercial opportunities to arise from the universitys expertise in stem cells and is based on the research of Dr Ludovic Vallier, Dr Tamir Rashid and Professor Roger Pedersen of the universitys Anne McLaren Laboratory of Regenerative Medicine.

Dr Vallier led a team, including Dr Rashid, Dr Nick Hannan and Candy Cho, that developed a method to generate stem cells by reprogramming cells from patients skin.

These cells, known as human induced pluripotent stem cells (hIPSC), can be differentiated into almost any cell type, allowing the opportunity to have a ready source of human cells for testing new therapies.

Definigen has built on this technology to supply hIPSC-derived hepatocytes in a highly reproducible and scalable manner for commercial use.

Through its OptiDIFF platform, Definigen produces validated libraries of disease modelled human liver cells for a range of Inherited Metabolic Diseases. The phenotype and pathology of the diseases has been confirmed in the cells and the resulting products are available for utilisation in drug discovery lead optimisation studies.

Future growth areas for the company include providing hepatocytes for toxicology testing, pancreatic cells for testing new diabetes therapies, and developing a new long-term storage and preservation method for hIPSC cells.

Other investors in this funding round include 24 Haymarket and Jonathan Milner, the CEO of Abcam, chairman of Axol Bioscience and backer of a large number of life science companies in the Cambridge MedTech cluster.

Continue reading here:
Definigen raises £1.3m for stem cell advance

Breakthrough in treating leukemia, lymphoma with umbilical cord blood stem cells

By adminDecember 12, 2013Stem Cell Medical Center

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

9-Dec-2013

Contact: Jim Ritter jritter@lumc.edu 708-216-2445 Loyola University Health System

MAYWOOD, Il. - Donated umbilical cord blood contains stem cells that can save the lives of patients with leukemia, lymphoma and other blood cancers.

Now a study lead by a Loyola University Medical Center oncologist has found that growing cord blood stem cells in a laboratory before transplanting them into patients significantly improves survival.

The cell-expansion technology potentially could boost the number of patients who could benefit from life-saving transplants of stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood, said Patrick Stiff, MD, lead author of the study. Stiff, director of Loyola's Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, presented findings at the 2013 annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

The ASH meeting is the preeminent annual event for physicians and scientists in hematology. Data from more than 5,300 abstracts were presented, and Stiff's abstract was selected as one of the 2013 meeting's top submissions.

Stem cell transplants can save lives of patients who have no other options. Patients receive high-dose chemotherapy, and in some cases, high-dose radiation as well. The treatment, unfortunately, kills healthy blood cells along with the cancerous cells. To rebuild the stores of healthy cells, the patient subsequently receives a transplant infusion of immature stem cells. Over time, these stem cells develop into new blood cells.

Stem cells are produced in the bone marrow. In many cases, patients receive bone marrow stem cells donated by family members or Good Samaritans who have signed up with a bone marrow registry.

But fewer than 50 percent of eligible patients can find a matching bone marrow donor. In such cases, stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood can be an effective alternative because these cells do not require perfect matches. (The cord blood is donated by parents of newborns, and frozen in a cord blood bank.)

Breakthrough in Treating Leukemia, Lymphoma Patients with Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells

By adminDecember 12, 2013Stem Cell Medical Center

Contact Information

Available for logged-in reporters only

Newswise MAYWOOD, Il. - Donated umbilical cord blood contains stem cells that can save the lives of patients with leukemia, lymphoma and other blood cancers.

Now a study lead by a Loyola University Medical Center oncologist has found that growing cord blood stem cells in a laboratory before transplanting them into patients significantly improves survival.

The cell-expansion technology potentially could boost the number of patients who could benefit from life-saving transplants of stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood, said Patrick Stiff, MD, lead author of the study. Stiff, director of Loyolas Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, presented findings at the 2013 annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

The ASH meeting is the preeminent annual event for physicians and scientists in hematology. Data from more than 5,300 abstracts were presented, and Stiffs abstract was selected as one of the 2013 meetings top submissions.

Stem cells are produced in the bone marrow. In many cases, patients receive bone marrow stem cells donated by family members or Good Samaritans who have signed up with a bone marrow registry.

A cord blood donation contains only about one ounce of blood, which usually is enough for only a child or very small adult. Many adults, therefore, receive a double dose of cord blood stem cells donated by two newborns.

Original post:
Breakthrough in Treating Leukemia, Lymphoma Patients with Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells

California Stem Cell Clinic, TeleHealth, Now Offering Five Effective Nonoperative Arthritis Treatments

By adminDecember 12, 2013Stem Cell Clinic

Orange, California (PRWEB) December 09, 2013

Top California stem cell clinic, TeleHealth, is now offering five nonsurgical treatments for joint arthritis. The treatments offered are all outpatient, low risk and have the potential to help patients avoid joint replacements. For more information and scheduling, call (888) 828-4575.

Regenerative medicine offers treatments that are meant to restore and repair damaged joints. Conventional treatments for joint arthritis have been excellent at pain relief, however, they have not been able to alter the course of the disease.

Stem cell injections, on the other hand, are administered for both pain relief and altering the course of arthritis. Initial published studies have demonstrated their benefit. Stem cell treatments at TeleHealth include either bone marrow, fat derived, or blood derived stem cell injections. The risks are extremely low with these procedures since the material is harvested from the patient, processed immediately, and then injected into the target area.

Additionally, the clinic offers platelet rich plasma therapy. Known as PRP therapy for short, the treatment involves a simple blood draw. The blood is then spun down into concentrated platelets and growth factors and injected into the arthritic joint.

One additional treatment offered by TeleHealth is prolotherapy. The prolotherapy administered involves saline injections into the areas in and around arthritic joints to prompt pain relief and regeneration.

All of the pain relief treatments for arthritic joints are performed by Board Certified doctors. The clinic sees patients from a broad area, and there are times when insurance covers the injections.

For more information and scheduling with a top stem cell clinic, call (888) 828-4575.

Read the original post:
California Stem Cell Clinic, TeleHealth, Now Offering Five Effective Nonoperative Arthritis Treatments

Okyanos Heart Institute CEO Matt Feshbach Congratulates Japan’s Legislators On Stem Cell Bill And Global Regulatory …

By adminDecember 12, 2013Stem Cell Clinic

FREEPORT, The Bahamas (PRWEB) December 06, 2013

December 6, 2013 Matt Feshbach, CEO of Okyanos Heart Institute whose mission it is to bring a new standard of care and better quality of life to patients with coronary artery disease using cardiac stem cell therapy, acknowledges the Japanese legislature for its recent approval of a bill aimed at the treatment of certain chronic diseases using regenerative medicine strategies.

The legislation was passed in Japan on November 20th, 2013. The new regenerative medicine law emphasizes the importance of establishing patient safety in the use of adult stem cell therapies prior to being offered commercially. It also serves to support innovation in stem cell and regenerative medicine therapies by providing a framework by which such technologies may be granted new, limited approval paths for some biologics.

Japan has taken a leadership position globally for its passage of enlightened legislation for stem cell therapy, said Feshbach, who recognizes this development as an important milestone in its potential to benefit patients and the field of healthcare.

We applaud Japan as well as other countries including but not limited to Australia, Singapore, and New Zealand for approving stem cell processing devices and/or biologics (such as stem cells) for use in clinics today, he added. This legislation in Japan says that if a stem cell therapy protocol can demonstrate a strong safety profile, physicians have the option to offer it to patients, generally when other standard-of-care interventions have not proven effective and the patients have no other options available to them. Patients will have the choice to use their own stem cells to treat the condition. By tracking the progress of the patients over time, efficacy can be determined and the treatment may become another standard-of-care treatment option available to patients.

While this research is important over the long term, adult stem cell therapy is unique in that it takes advantage of the natural mechanisms of a persons own stem cells to repair the cells, tissues or organs damaged by disease or injury, stated Feshbach. The dawn of a new phase in the evolution of medicine has begun.

Additional countries such as The Bahamas, Panama, Argentina and Jordan have established regulations and legislation designed to both protect patient safety and give access to treatments which have the potential to help unmet needs such as heart failure and other diseases.

Japan represents the second-largest medical market in the world and remains a global leader in both adult stem cell and gene therapy trials. Dr. Shinya Yamanaka, professor and director for the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA) at Kyoto University, was awarded a Nobel Prize in 2012 for the discovery of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS). Click here to read more about the Japanese legislatures recent stem cell measures.

About Okyanos Heart Institute: (Oh key AH nos) Based in Freeport, The Bahamas, Okyanos Heart Institutes mission is to bring a new standard of care and a better quality of life to patients with coronary artery disease using cardiac stem cell therapy. Okyanos adheres to U.S. surgical center standards and is led by Chief Medical Officer Howard T. Walpole Jr., M.D., M.B.A., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I. Okyanos Treatment utilizes a unique blend of stem and regenerative cells derived from ones own adipose (fat) tissue. The cells, when placed into the heart via a minimally-invasive catheterization, stimulate the growth of new blood vessels, a process known as angiogenesis. The treatment facilitates blood flow in the heart and supports intake and use of oxygen (as demonstrated in rigorous clinical trials such as the PRECISE trial). The literary name Okyanos (Oceanos) symbolizes flow. For more information, go to http://www.okyanos.com

Read the rest here:
Okyanos Heart Institute CEO Matt Feshbach Congratulates Japan’s Legislators On Stem Cell Bill And Global Regulatory ...

Stem cells for Parkinson’s getting ready for clinic

By adminDecember 12, 2013Stem Cell Clinic

A groundbreaking attempt to heal eight Parkinson's patients with their own cells could move from research to the clinic next year.

For eight Parkinson's patients seeking treatment with a new form of stem cell therapy, 2014 promises to be a milestone. If all goes well, next year the FDA will give approval to begin clinical trials. And if the patients can raise enough money, the scientists and doctors working with them will have the money to proceed.

Jeanne Loring, a stem cell scientist at The Scripps Research Institute, discusses the status of a project to treat Parkinson's patients with their own cells, turned into the kind of brain cells destroyed in Parkinson's. The project is a collaboration with Scripps Health and the Parkinson's Association of San Diego.

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute led by Jeanne Loring have taken skin cells from all patients and grown them into artificial embryonic stem cells, called induced pluripotent stem cells. They then converted the cells into dopamine-making neurons, the kind destroyed in Parkinson's disease.

Loring discussed the project's progress on Friday morning at the 2013 World Stem Cell Summit in San Diego.

If animal studies now under way and other requirements are met, doctors at Scripps Health will perform a clinical trial. They will grow neurons until they are just short of maturity, then transplant them into the brains of the respective patients. The cells are expected to complete maturation in the brain, forming appropriate connections with their new neighbors, and begin making dopamine.

Earlier attempts to treat Parkinson's with a stem cell-like therapy mostly failed because of difficulties in quality control of the source, neural cells from aborted fetuses, Loring said. But some patients gained lasting improvement, a tantalizing hint that the trials were on the right track.

In January, a "pre-pre-IND meeting" is planned with the FDA, Loring said.

Also speaking were Ed Fitzpatrick, one of the eight patients, and Kyoto University researcher Jun Takahashi, who is independently trying the same approach in Japan.

Ed Fitzpatrick, one of eight Parkinson's patients in a program to be treated with his own cells, grown into the kind of brain cells destroyed in Parkinson's.

Read the rest here:
Stem cells for Parkinson's getting ready for clinic

UCLA Scientists First to Track Joint Cartilage Development in Humans

By adminDecember 12, 2013Uncategorized

Contact Information

Available for logged-in reporters only

Newswise Stem cell researchers from UCLAs Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research have published the first study to identify the origin cells and track the early development of human articular cartilage, providing what could be a new cell source and biological roadmap for therapies to repair cartilage defects and osteoarthritis. These revolutionary therapies could reach clinical trials within three years.

Led by Dr. Denis Evseenko, assistant professor of orthopedic surgery and head of UCLAs Laboratory of Connective Tissue Regeneration, the study was published online ahead of print in Stem Cell Reports on December 12, 2013.

Articular cartilage is a highly specialized tissue formed from cells called chondrocytes that protect the bones of joints from forces associated with load bearing and impact, and allows nearly frictionless motion between the articular surfaces. Cartilage injury and lack of cartilage regeneration often lead to osteoarthritis involving degradation of joints, including cartilage and bone. Osteoarthritis currently affects more than 20 million people in the United States alone, making joint surface restoration a major priority in modern medicine.

Different cell types have been studied with respect to their ability to generate articular cartilage. However, none of the current cell-based repair strategies including expanded articular chondrocytes or mesenchymal stromal cells from adult bone marrow, adipose tissue, sinovium or amniotic fluid have generated long-lasting articular cartilage tissue in the laboratory.

By bridging developmental biology and tissue engineering, Evseenkos discoveries represent a critical missing link providing scientists with checkpoints to tell if the cartilage cells (called chondrocytes) are developing correctly.

We began with three questions about cartilage development, Evseenko said, we wanted to know the key molecular mechanisms, the key cell populations, and the developmental stages in humans. We carefully studied how the chondrocytes developed, watching not only their genes, but other biological markers that will allow us to apply the system for the improvement of current stem cell-based therapeutic approaches.

This research was also the first attempt to generate all the key landmarks that allow generation of clinically relevant cell types for cartilage regeneration with the highest animal-free standards. This means that the process did not rely on any animal components, thus therapeutic products such as stem-cell serums can be produced that are safe for humans.

Evseenko added that in a living organism more than one cell type is responsible for the complete regeneration of tissue, so in addition to the studies involving generation of articular cartilage from human stem cells, he and his team are now trying different protocols using different combinations of adult progenitor cells present in the joint to regenerate cartilage until the best one is found for therapeutic use.

Read this article:
UCLA Scientists First to Track Joint Cartilage Development in Humans

Worcester Polytechnic Institute’s Tanja Dominko Named Slovenian Ambassador of Science for 2013

By adminDecember 12, 2013Uncategorized

Worcester, MA (PRWEB) December 10, 2013

Tanja Dominko, DVM, PhD, associate professor of biology and biotechnology at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), is the 2013 Slovenian Ambassador of Science, a national award given to one Slovenian native each year in recognition of outstanding achievements and global scientific impact. The award also honors Dominko's international engagement in developing programs that bring together WPI students and faculty members with Slovenian colleagues to address important biomedical challenges.

Slovenian President Borut Pahor presided at the awards ceremony on Nov. 22, 2013, in the city of Maribor, where Dominko joined nine other scientists and engineers who received national awards for a range of accomplishments. At the event, President Pahor spoke of the vital need to support scientific research and education on a global basis to help improve the human conditiona message that Dominko says resonates deeply with her personal and professional goals to discover and translate new knowledge of human physiology to help cure disease.

"When I learned that I was selected, it was a special moment," she said. "Knowing that after working in the United States for 23 years, that the people of my homeland recognized the value of what we have been doing here gave me a sweet feeling inside. What is most important, though, is the work we are continuing to do, both here at WPI and at the University of Nova Gorica in Slovenia, to help make regenerative cell therapies a reality for all people, regardless of where they live or their ability to pay for treatment."

In a written statement congratulating Dominko for her award, Dr. Boo Cerar, Slovenian Ambassador to the United States, said, "I wish to express my sincere compliments for your outstanding work in the area of stem cell research, regenerative medicine, and tissue engineering, moreover for your valuable role in promoting education and awareness about the fields, both in Slovenia and in the United States."

Dominko is globally recognized for her research in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine. Her work has spanned embryonic transfer, cloning through somatic cell nuclear transfer, and the basic science of early embryogenesis. She is currently at the forefront of the science of cellular reprograming, exploring how mature human skin cells can be coaxed to become more like stem cells able to recapitulate damaged tissues throughout the body.

"This is wonderful recognition for an important body of work and for Tanjas ongoing commitment to advance science and education," said Karen Kashmanian Oates, Peterson Family Dean of Arts and Sciences at WPI. "Through her efforts, Tanja not only honors her homeland, but brings honor to WPI and the faculty and students who work with her. Tanjas engagement of science across borders has created informal, yet essential, networks of science diplomacy. We look forward to the exciting work that will come from these collaborations."

After earning an MS in large animal reproduction and obstetrics and a doctor of veterinary medicine degree from the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia, Dominko came to the United States in 1990 to enroll in a graduate program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. There she earned a PhD in endocrinology and reproductive physiology, working in the lab next door to Professor Jamie Thomson, who made history by isolating the first embryonic stem cells, initially from primates and then from humans.

"I have always been interested in reproductive physiology, and when I was at Madison two important things happened that shaped my career," Dominko says. "First, there were the discoveries by Jamie Thomson. Then, two of my friends, Ian Wilmut and the late Keith Campbell in the UK, successfully cloned the sheep Dolly. So I guess it was a case of being in the right place at the right time, to be connected with these people, and then to be able to move my work into the area of stem cell biology, cloning, and ultimately regenerative cellular therapies."

After a postdoctoral fellowship at Madison, and another in the lab of Gerald Schatten, PhD, at the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Dominko was recruited to Worcester for a senior research position at Advanced Cell Technology Inc. She came to WPI in 2006 as an assistant research professor and CEO of a start-up company she founded called CellThera, which moved into WPIs Bioengineering Institute. In 2008 Dominko was appointed associate professor of biology and biotechnology at WPI; she received tenure in 2012.

See the rest here:
Worcester Polytechnic Institute’s Tanja Dominko Named Slovenian Ambassador of Science for 2013